Evaporator



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. W. 0. JOHNSON.

V EVAPORATOR.

No. 442,122. Patented Dec. 9, 1890.

2a Ii UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

\VILLIAM OSCAR JOHNSON, OF PEEDES, TEXAS.

EVAPO RATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 442,122, dated December 9, 1890. Application filed February 26, 1890. Serial No. 341,782- (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM OSCAR J OHN- SON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Peedes, in the county of Kaufman and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Evaporator, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to evaporators such as are used principally for evaporating canejuice; and it has for its object to construct a device which may be easily and conveniently leveled or tilted, as occasion may require, by means of which the cane-juice shallreceive a preliminary heating before it is discharged into the evaporating-pan and which shall be in all respects simple, convenient, and elficient.

Vith these ends in view the invention consists in the improved construction, ar

rangement, and combination of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of an evaporating-furnace embodying my improvements and showing the evaporating'pan in position for operation. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken centrally through the furnace. Fi 4 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken through the smoke-stack, the drum, and the supplemental-heater. Fig. 5 is an end elevation-of the apparatus.

Like numerals of reference indicate like parts in all the figures.

1 designates the furnace, which is provided at its front end with the charging-door 2 and with the grate 3, which is of ordinary construction. The front and rear ends of the furnace are provided with top plates 4, having upwardly-extending flanges 5, between which the evaporatingpan 6 is mounted. It will thus be seen that the furnace proper is of greater length than the evaporating-pan and extends beyond the ends of the latter, which is thus subjected throughout its length to the heat from the furnace and not merely for a portion of its length, as is the case ordinarily when the ends of the evaporating-pan are permitted to extend several inches beyond the ends of the furnace.

The furnace-bed is mounted upon the rockers 7, which are mounted slidingly in caps 8, having transverse openings 9 to receive the transverse supporting-bar 10. The latter is adjustable in the said holding'caps, and may be held securely at any desired adjustmentby means of set-screws 11, passing through lugs or brackets extendinglaterally from said holding-caps. The ends of the transverse supportingbar 10 are provided with vertical screw-threaded perforations, through which extend the supportingscrews 12, the upper of which ends are provided with handles 13 and the lower ends of which have points 14, that rest in recesses or sockets 15, formed in bearing-plates 16, which are mounted in the longitudinally-arranged sills or supportingblocks 17.

inder the rear end of the furnace is arranged an upright 18, to the upper end of which is pivoted a lever 19, having a springcatch 20, adapted to engage any one of a series of notches or recesses 21 in a segmental bar or bracket 22, which is arranged concentrically with the fulcrum of the lever 19. Pivotally connected with the latter is a connect ing-rod 24:, having a series of perforations 25, any one of which may be connected by a transverse pin or bolt 26 with the ears or lugs 27, that extend rearwardly from the rear end of the furnace.

The top plate 4, at the rear end of the furnace, is provided with the upwardly-extend ing smoke-stack 28, which is provided with a drum 29, the ends of which are open to re ceive a cylindrical vessel 30, which is arranged removably in the said drum. The upper side of the latter supports the upper end of the smoke-stack, as will be seen in the drawings. Brackets 31 are mounted upon the rear end of the furnace-casing to support the weight of the drum and ot the cylindrical vessel within the latter. Said cylindrical vessel is provided atone end with a hand-hole 32, closed by a removable cap 33, which maybe secured detachably in any suitable manner. The end of the cylindrical vessel which has the handhole is provided with a filling-tube 34E, which may be connected by a flexible tube or in any other convenient manner with the vat or vessel containing the raw juice, which may thus be fed into the cylindrical heating-vessel 30. The opposite end of the latter is provided ICO vessel 30 to the front end of the evaporating-- tank. The said feed-tube 38 is mounted in bearing or supporting sleeves 39 on one side of the evaporatingtank, and its front end has a discharge-spout 40, opening into the forward compartment of the said evaporating-tank. The rear end of the feed-tube 38 is bent parallel to the rear end of the evaporating-tank, and is supported upon a lug 41, extending from one of the supporting-brackets 3].. The extreme rear end of the feedtube 38 is bent upwardly and fits over the mouth of the faucet 37.

Located about centrally in the furnace in rear of the grate is a transverse shaft 42, in front of which is arranged a wall or deflector 43, which protects said shaft from the direct action of the flames and from being burned outand destroyed. One end of the shaft 42 is provided with a crank 44, to which is pivoted an operating lever or handle 45, extending through a staple 46 and having a series of notches 47, any one of which maybe made to engage said staple, thereby holding the operating-lever and the crank-shaft 42 in any position to which they may be adj usted. Suitably secured upon the shaft 42 between the side walls of the furnace is a fire wall or damper 48, whereby the draft in the furnace may be regulated by simply adjusting the said damper by the operating mechanism which has just been described.

The operation and advantages of my improved evaporating-furnace will be readily understood from the foregoing description,

taken in connection with the drawings hereto annexed.

The importance of keeping the furnace and the evaporating-pan supported thereon normally in a level position is well understood, and evaporating-furnaces have heretofore been provided with or mounted upon rockers for the purpose of enabling them to be adjusted to a level. Heretofore, however, it has been necessary to pry the furnace to a level position by the use of levers or crow-bars, after which they have been propped to secure them in position.

By my present improvement the adjustment may be more speedily, conveniently, and accurately effected by the use of the adjusting-screws 12 at the ends of the transverse supporting-bar 10.

The evaporating-pan used in connection with my invention is of ordinary well-known construction; but it will be seen that by the improved construction of the furnace, as herein described, the said evaporating-pan is exposed for its entire length to the action of the fire in the said furnace, thereby causing the contents of the evaporating-pan to be more thoroughly and effectually evaporated than would otherwise be the case.

The draft in the furnace may be accurately regulated by means of a damper, which is in perfect control of the operator by thehereindescribed adjusting mechanism. The operator may also, by the cock or faucet 37, regulate the admission into the evaporating-pan of the juice which has been previously heated in the cylindrical vessel 30. The juice when admitted into the front end of the evaporatingpan is at or near a boiling-heat, and the temperature of the contents of the evaporatingpan will consequently rise to the desired point much more quickly than when the juice is fed cold into the evaporating-pan. In case of the juice cooking too fast at the front end of the evaporating-pan the furnace may, by manipulating the lever 19, be tilted so as to cause a portion of the sirup from the rear end of the pan to flow forward, and vice versa, in the event of the siru p cooking too slowly. By means of the damper the draft inthe furnace may be controlledso as to avoid scorching the sirup. Again, if by any. chance too much juice should get into the evaporatingpan and crowd the sirup too much, the operator may, by manipulating the lever 19, in a moment raise the rear end of the furnace and evaporating-pan, thereby causing the uncooked juice to flow to the tire end of the evaporator, or should the juice get too low and the sirup accumulate too fast, the operator may by a reverse movement of the le ver cause the sirup to pass out quickly before the sirup gets scorched or burned. By the use of the supplemental heater the juice will be heated, as described, before being dis charged into the evaporating-pan, and acousiderable saving in fuel may thus be effected.

The general construction of my improved evaporating-furnace and its attachments is simple and inexpensive, and it may be very easily and conveniently operated with most satisfactory results.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. In an evaporator, the combination of the furnace, the rockers supporting the same, the caps forming bearings in which said rockers may slide, and suitable supporting devices, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of the sills or supporte ing-blocks, the evaporating-pan, the evaporating-furnace mounted upon rockers, the caps forming bearings in which said rockers may slide longitudinally, the supporting-bar transversely adjustable in the said caps, and the supporting-screws extending vertically through the ends of said supporting-bar, substantially as set forth.

The combination of the evaporatingpan, the furnace mounted upon rockers, the caps forming bearings in which said rockers may slide longitudinally, the supporting-bar IOC transversely adjustable in said caps, the setscrews securing said bars in position, the vertically-adjustable supporting-screws in the ends of said supporting-bar, and the sills having bearing-plates provided with sockets or recesses to receive the points of the supporting-screws, substantially as set forth.

4. In an evaporator, the combination, with the evaporating-pan and the furnace provided with rockers, of the supporting-bar, the vertical supporting screws, an adjusting lever pivoted to an upright near the rear end of the furnace, means for securing said lever in any position to which it may be adjusted, and a link connecting said lever adj ustably with the rear end of thefurnacebed, substantially as set forth.

5. 111 an evaporator, the combination, with the evaporating-pan and the furnace, of a transverse shaft journaled in the sides of the same in rear of the grate, a fire-wall or deflector arranged in front of said shaft, a damper mounted upon the latter, and mechanism for adjusting the said damper-shaft and for retaining it in any position to which it may be adjusted, substantially as set forth.

6. In an evaporator, the furnace supporting the evaporating-pan and provided at its rear end with a top plate, in combination with the smoke-stack rising from said top plate and having a drum, the brackets mounted upon said top plate and supporting the said drum, and a heating-vessel mounted detachably in the ends of the said drum, substantially as set forth.

7. In an evaporator, the combination of the evaporating-pan, the furnace, the smoke-stack having a drum, the heating-vessel mounted detachably in the said drum and having a filling-tube and a discharge-faucet, the evaporating-pan mounted upon the furnace, and

the filling'tube mounted in bearings upon one side of the evaporating-pan and having a discharge-spout opening into the front compartment of said evaporating-pan and having an upturned rear end aligning with the dis charge-faucet of the supplemental heatingvessel, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination of the furnace supporting the evaporating-pan and having a top plate at its rear end the smoke-stack rising from said top plate and having a drum, a supplemental heating-vessel mounted detachably in the latter and having a filling-tube and a dischargefaucet, the evaporating-pan mounted upon the furnace-bed, the fillingtube secured to said evaporating-pan and having a discharge-spout opening into the front compartment of the evaporating-pan and an upturned rear end aligning with the discharge-faucet of the supplemental heating-vessel, and a lug extending forwardly from one of the drun'i-supporting brackets and supporting the said filling-pipe in operative position, substantially as set forth.

9. In an evaporator constructed substantially as herein described, the supplemental heating-vessel consisting of a cylindrical vessel mounted detachably in the smoke-stack drum of the furnace and provided at one end with a filling-tube and a hand-hole having a detachable cap and at the other end with a dischargespou t, a gage-glass, and aven ttube, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own Ihave hereto affixed my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

WILLIAM OSCAR JOHNSON.

\Vitnesses:

J. T. J OHNSON, IV. L. BICCALL. 

